Funny Ha-Ha

Douchebag of the Year:

Jeff Sessions Irked By Crying Child: "Enough With The Histrionics" (VIDEO):

"For most people, the sight of a 12-year-old boy in tears at the prospect of his mother being deported halfway around the world would invoke some sympathy. Unmoved, however, was Alabama Republican Jeff Sessions, ranking minority member of the Committee and the only Republican to bother to attend the hearing. At the sight of the weeping boy, according to a Senate staffer who was at the hearing, Sessions leaned towards one of his aides and sighed, 'Enough with the histrionics.' Sessions's press secretary did not return a call seeking comment."

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Let's see how Alabama's most populous county reacts to all of these 'socialist' programs disappearing.

Not gonna be funny when maw-maw can't get fed or driven to the hospital.

Alabama County Set to Halt Services, Shut Buildings Over Budget - Bloomberg.com:

"June 5 (Bloomberg) -- Alabama’s most populous county is preparing to stop road maintenance, close courthouses and shutter services for the elderly after a court struck down taxes that pay for about 35 percent of its budget."

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Duh. Republican's base doing their dirty work.

Corporations behind efforts to label Sotomayor ‘racist’:

"Corporate interests posing as a grassroots conservative group are behind attacks on President Obama’s Supreme Court nominee pick, a RAW STORY investigation has found.

The Committee for Justice (CFJ), an astroturf group established by big business in July 2002 to create an appearance of popular support for President Bush’s judicial nominees, is now leading the effort to oppose the nomination of Judge Sonia Sotomayor to the US Supreme Court."

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Good for the Gators.

Daily Kos: Union buster bitten by Gator:

"The University of Florida is the number two selling brand of university athletic apparel in the country, behind only the University of Texas, and its value keeps increasing. In the last four years the Gators won two national championships in basketball and two national championships in football. Going into the 2009-2010 season the Gator football team is the consensus pre-season #1 and is led by the Heisman favorite, Tim Tebow. Gators also have the top-ranked outdoor mens track team, are still in the running for the men's College World Series, and just lost in the championship series of women's softball (congratulations Washington Huskies).

The University of Florida just cut its ties to Russell Athletics, revoking its license to sell Gator apparel. Union busters, you see, are Gator Bait."

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Change 'job creation' with 'enslavement' then you'll have an accurate article.

Wal-Mart says it will create 22,000 jobs in 2009

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Nothing to see here, folks. Keep moving along.

Watch Earth Disappear In Time-Lapse Videos:

"This is a big week for viewing the effects of humanity on Earth from above -- in addition to a documentary film coming out this Friday, Wired has used NASA Earth Observatory images to created time-lapse videos of the Earth being de-Earthed.

You can see deforestation in the Amazon, draining of the Aral Sea, urbanization of Dubai and more over at Wired Science."

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Jebus gave us laughter, silly.

Ha-Ha! Ape study traces evolution of laughter:

"When scientists set out to trace the roots of human laughter, some chimps and gorillas were just tickled to help. Literally.
More News

That's how researchers made a variety of apes and some human babies laugh. After analyzing the sounds, they concluded that people and great apes inherited laughter from a shared ancestor that lived more than 10 million years ago.

Experts praised the work. It gives very strong evidence that ape and human laughter are related through evolution, said Frans de Waal of the Yerkes National Primate Research Center at Emory University in Atlanta."\

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DBT Week in Review - 6/5/09

Patterson Hood/DBT

PATTERSON HOOD STORY TELLER SESSION (solo)

BONNAROO SOLAR STAGE

FRIDAY, JUNE 12, 2009

4-4:45 PM

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Kevn Kinney will be 2nd support for the Patterson Hood/Screwtopians show June 23rd, Music Hall of Williamsburg, Brooklyn, NY.

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Ani DiFranco, Patterson Hood, Drive By Truckers: Questions and Answers with Patterson Hood - The Smoke-Filled Room:

"Crawdaddy!: Overtly political songwriting seems greatly diminished these days, in rock, folk, and elsewhere. How do you see your role as a songwriter? Do you feel an obligation to write about politics?

Hood: I write about life, but much of life is controlled by and affected by politics. I don't write many overtly political songs, but I write a lot about the personal side of how people have been affected by political actions. The personal consequences of politics."

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newburycomics.com - Patterson Hood with Limited* Autographed CD Booklet!:

"Pre-Order the upcoming release, Murdering Oscar (And Other Love Songs) by Patterson Hood and get a limited* autographed CD Booklet with purchase!"

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Booker T. Jones

Booker T: A Soul Man Tackles OutKast : NPR Music:

"All this compatibility is palpable on Potato Hole, a guitar-loaded record that works mostly in robust instrumental rock but also explores R&B and funk. While most of the songs are memorable Jones originals, the organist and sometime guitarist includes three covers, among them the Andre 3000-helmed OutKast smash from 2003, 'Hey Ya.'"

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Dexateens

Dexateens - Singlewide - Twangville

In today’s crowded field of twangy-rock bands that aspire to be something greater than a glorified Skynyrd tribute band, all-too few of those bands ever actually break out. Chances are slim that a certain new or little known band will produce something that really sets them apart from being just another southern rock band that doesn’t have Mike Cooley, Ben Nichols or Patterson Hood writing and performing their songs. With their most recent release, Singlewide, The Dexateens have done just that, and as a result, the guys from Tuscaloosa have prodcued a disc that will likely make the various Jack Daniels swilling, rebel flag waving clones think about working up a new version of something other than “Gimme Three Steps”.

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Music

Haggard returns to Shoals for concert | TimesDaily.com | The Times Daily | Florence, AL:

"After almost five years, country music star Merle Haggard is returning to the Shoals for another concert. And just like the last time, it's for a good cause.
Want to go?

* What: Concert featuring Merle Haggard, Gene Watson and Johnny Holland
* When: Friday, June 19. Gates open at 5 p.m., show starts at 6:30 p.m.
* Where: Alabama Music Hall of Fame, 617 U.S. 72, Tuscumbia
* Cost: $25 in advance; $30 day of the show
* Details: 381-4417

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The Associated Press: Ex-Pink Floyd rocker wants Israeli wall down:

"AIDA REFUGEE CAMP, West Bank (AP) — The legendary rocker and co-founder of Pink Floyd says he would give a concert in a flash if Israel's West Bank wall is torn down."

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Bought this one when it came out. Cassette tape, baby.

"3 Feet High and Rising": De La Soul's Track by Track Guide to Groundbreaking 1989 LP : Rolling Stone:

"It's been 20 years since De La Soul introduced a funkier, sunnier brand of hip-hop with the genre-broadening classic 3 Feet High and Rising, an album that went on to inspire legions of innovative followers from Digable Planets and Mos Def to OutKast and Kanye West. Mase, Posdnous and Trugoy looked back at 3 Feet and shared some of their plans to commemorate the LP's anniversary in an exclusive track-by-track interview with Rolling Stone."

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TV

Did Ex-Dawson's Creek Show Runner Just Trash Katie Holmes? - News - Yahoo! TV

Tom then went on to seemingly trash Dawson's stars Katie Holmes, James Van Der Beek, Joshua Jackson and Michelle Williams. Check this craziness out...

"The experience was miserable," he continued about Dawson's. "But it was a four-year boot camp. It was like going to TV grad school and learning how to run a television show. Anybody on that show who could make a decision was allowed to run it at some point. I inherited the very awkward college years, and I almost ran the show into the ground. But I learned everything that I needed to know about how to run a show."

When the panel moderator asked, "What was it specifically that made it such a challenge?" Tom dropped this bomb: "It was the four monstrous actors at the core of it."

The audience erupted in laughter as Tom continued, saying: "They were very young, and they got very famous, and they made life miserable for any writer or producer on the show."

You may be asking yourself why in the hell I posted an article about Dawson's Creek.

Well... and I've been hesitant to post this 'cause it was another life, but....



All I have to say is that Michelle Williams was very cool. We chatted in-between takes and she always took the time to sign autographs and chat with some young fans that hung around the set.

And Joshua Jackson once saved someone drowning at Wrightsville Beach... and so have I... but no article was written about my save.... Lots of idiots get into the water at W.B.

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The Road to Margaret and Helen

Sometimes you stumble upon something on the web that makes the world all seem perfectly right.

I had one of those stumbles yesterday when I was introduced to Margaret and Helen.

You really must read the 'About' section of their blog. Here's a snippet:

"My name is Helen Philpot. I am 82 years old. My grandson taught me how to do this so that I could “blog” with my best friend Margaret Schmechtman who I met in college almost 60 years ago. I have three children with my husband Harold. Margaret has three dogs with her husband Howard. I live in Texas and Margaret lives in Maine."

If only I were 40 years older.....

Take some time today to read as many posts as you can from these extraordinary ladies.

82 and kicking hard.

Margaret and Helen:

"Margaret, I am here to tell you that Dick Cheney is a bitch – a big one too. I mean I thought that Sarah Palin was a bitch, but even she can’t hold a candle to this guy. Have you been listening to him recently?

I would say that it takes some pretty big balls to go on national television again and again to justify torture, but Dick was too much of a wimp to serve his country in the military so I’m pretty sure there ain’t much hanging between his legs. But being a bitch myself, I can assure you that you don’t need balls to be a bitch. You just need to not give a damn what other people think of you… and Dick doesn’t even care what his family and friends think about him much less the rest of us.

I have to admit that I am more than a little perplexed by Dick’s rise to power. He flunked out of Yale – something even George W. Bush didn’t do – and has at least two DWI’s on his record – one more than Georgie Boy. So basically from 2001 to 2009 we had two dry-drunk idiots running the country. But only one of them has had the good sense to shut the hell up since leaving office."

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Speaking of 'The Bitch' and his boy....

Shocking. They passed the buck. Just like they did with everything else.

Cheney Acknowledges Passing The Buck On GM: Bush Didn’t ‘Want To Be The One Who Pulled The Plug’:

"Last night on Fox News, Vice President Cheney admitted that the Bush administration deliberately decided to pass the buck on GM and let President Obama deal with the problem. Cheney admitted that he thought the “right outcome was going to be bankruptcy,” but that President Bush didn’t want to “be the one who pulled the plug.” Instead, the Bush administration put together a costly auto bailout to stem the tide until President Obama took office:"

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One doesn't 'show' empathy. One either has empathy or not.

If you 'work hard' to 'show empathy' then you are not a naturally empathetic person and, thusly, are faking a human trait in order to garner favor with others.

The 2nd part of the statement is so apparently ridiculous that it doesn't warrant comment.

Indiana Governor: Empathy Can Revive Republican Party:

"WASHINGTON — Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels, a potential 2012 presidential candidate, said Wednesday that his fellow Republicans need to work harder to show 'empathy' if they want to emerge from the political doldrums.

Daniels also called those on the left of the political spectrum 'the meanest people in politics.'"

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This is going to be great! Apparently the hyper-activity in the trailer below isn't apparent in the movie. The movie's tone and pace hold true to the book... I hope... and according to Esquire:

The Road Movie Review - Inside Movie of the Road - Esquire

YouTube - The Road - Official Trailer [HD]

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Cupboard is Bare

Two rounds of golf (shot an 81 yesterday, which could have easily been a 75), a tour of one of Frank Lloyd Wright's iconic retreats, catching Pixar's UP (which kick much ass... Squirrels!) some nice out dining... things that have kept me busy as hell, but have also kept my AAW article que quite bare.

Spending minimal amount of time online the past 4 days has been a rare treat.

So, not much going on today. Entertain yourselves. Back on track in the next few days.

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The power of one man.... and drugs.... and summer music festivals.

The kids are alright:

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Way Too Much Jesus

Just bought Buttholeville Homeboy Chris Lilly's BBQ book. It is a great read.

Must have for your cookbook collection.

Amazon.com: Big Bob Gibson's BBQ Book: Recipes and Secrets from a Legendary Barbecue Joint: Chris Lilly: Books:

"Winners of the World Championship BBQ Cook-Off for six years in a row and with hundreds of other contest ribbons as well, nobody does barbecue better than Big Bob Gibson Bar-B-Q in Decatur, Alabama. Chris Lilly, executive chef of Big Bob Gibson Bar-B-Q and great-grandson-in-law of Big Bob himself, now passes on the family secrets in this quintessential guide to barbecue.

From dry rubs to glazes and from sauces to slathers, Lilly gives the lowdown on Big Bob Gibson Bar-B-Q's award-winning seasonings and combinations. You’ll learn the unique flavors of different woods and you’ll get insider tips on creating the right heat—be it in a charcoal grill, home oven, or backyard ground pit. Then, get the scoop on pulled pork, smoked beef brisket, pit-fired poultry, and, of course, ribs.

Complete the feast with sides like red-skin potato salad and black-eyed peas. And surely you’ll want to save room for Lilly’s dessert recipes such as Big Mama’s Pound Cake. Loaded with succulent photographs, easy-to-follow instructions, and colorful stories, Big Bob Gibson’s BBQ Book honors the legacy of Big Bob Gibson—and of great barbeque."

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On to the serious stuff.

H/T to Osborne Ink:

Bitch, Please.: An Open Letter to Anti-Choicers:

"Just remember one thing: not a one of us babykillers have ever killed one of you.

We don't go into your 'Pregnancy Help Centers' and blow them up so you can stop scaring girls into having children they can't take care of and then forgetting about them and blaming them when they fall through the cracks of the system.

We don't shoot at your hatemongering pastors as they go into their places of worship, even though we know they'll be spewing more lies and filth about us and how evil we are and how we deserve to die, even though you all don't really get the irony of calling yourselves 'Pro-Life,' which you are decidedly not.

We don't block the doors to your doctors' offices, preventing you from getting your Viagra prescription so you can force your wife to submit to you, as every good Christian woman should.

And we don't fire your fucking asses for preventing women from obtaining access to medications that are prescribed to them privately, between them and their doctors, that have nothing to do with you, or your religion, or how many babies' souls you want to save today so you can meet your quota at the next potluck circlejerk."

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Silly Olbermann. Doesn't he know the we in the U.S. don't do 'accountability' anymore?

Olbermann: ‘Quarantine’ Fox News for inciting hate:

"Call a man a baby killer, a Nazi, like al-Qaeda, like Stalin, like Hitler, do it for four years,” Olbermann continued. “Then, the last part of the ingredient, act surprised when somebody shoots the man.”

“A television channel that repeatedly branded those it criticized politically as baby killers, as executioners, as equivalents of Nazis, Hitler, Mao Zedong, al-Qaeda, Stalin,” the MSNBC host continues. “A television channel that repeatedly all but encouraged its viewers commit a religious jihad against one of those it criticized. Something from the extremists in the Middle East, the product of fiction? No, it is elsewhere on your television, and it is time that it be stopped peacefully before it enables the death of another George Tiller.”"

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It's a little too little, it's a little too late.

But, thanks for the effort... I guess.

Frank Schaeffer: How I (and Other "Pro-Life" Leaders) Contributed to Dr. Tiller's Murder:

"The same hate machine I was part of is still attacking all abortionists as 'murderers.' And today once again the 'pro-life' leaders are busy ducking their personal responsibility for people acting on their words. The people who stir up the fringe never take responsibility. But I'd like to say on this day after a man was murdered in cold blood for preforming abortions that I -- and the people I worked with in the religious right, the Republican Party, the pro-life movement and the Roman Catholic Church, all contributed to this killing by our foolish and incendiary words.

I am very sorry."

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Check out the picture. Pretty neat.

Bird uses body as dam to stop drainpipe soaking chicks - Telegraph:

"The Mistle Thrush had built her nest on top of a downpipe, blocking the water's passage and causing the gutter to flood.

But desperate to protect her young, she puffed herself up to twice her size and sat in the drainpipe to stop the tide of rain water swamping the nest.

She was so occupied with her task that her mate was left to feed her and their young."

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Cookie Monsters

Your Conservative Domestic Terrorists.... and the person who killed Tiller is also a pretty bad person, too.

FAUX must purchase a lot of detergent to wash all of the blood of its hands.

O'Reilly's campaign against murdered doctor | Salon News:

"This is where O'Reilly's campaign against George Tiller becomes dangerous. While he never advocated anything violent or illegal, the Fox bully repeatedly portrayed the doctor as a murderer on the loose, allowed to do whatever he wanted by corrupt and decadent authorities. 'Also, it looks like Dr. Tiller, who some call Tiller the Baby Killer, is spending a large amount of money in order to get Mr. Morrison elected. That opens up all kinds of questions,' said O'Reilly on Nov. 6, 2006, in one of many suggestions that Tiller was improperly influencing the election."

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God forbid we allow health care to be run by a bunch of government bureaucrats.... that we elect... and, you know, can hold accountable at the ballot box.

Thank jeebus for the free market.

Aventis to pay $95 million to settle fraud charge:

"Pharmaceutical giant Aventis must pay more than 95 million dollars in an out-of-court settlement, after overcharging US and local health agencies for medications destined for indigent patients, federal prosecutors said Thursday."

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Know your evil-fuck health care scalawags.

VIDEO REPORT: Who Is Rick Scott And What Type Of Health Care System Is He Advocating?:

"Rick Scott is not only known for his efforts to build the “McDonald’s” of the health care industry, but his company was also forced to pay a $1.7 billion fraud settlement, the largest health care fraud settlement in U.S. history, for systematically stealing from taxpayers.

ThinkProgress has compiled a video report detailing who Rick Scott is, and what type of health care system he is defending. Watch it:"

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Cookies. Yes, cookies.

Famous Amos has more success extracting information than torture does.

The E&P Pub: No Torture Needed -- Cookies Did the Job:

"Fascinating piece coming in tomorrow's TIME magazine. Reporter Bobby Ghosh writes, “The most successful interrogation of an al-Qaeda operative by U.S. officials required no sleep deprivation, no slapping or ‘walling’ and no waterboarding. All it took to soften up Abu Jandal, who had been closer to Osama bin Laden than any other terrorist ever captured, was a handful of sugar-free cookies.”"

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Book cooking.

Drug Czar's Pot-Potency Claims Go Up In Smoke:

"A newly released report about marijuana potency undermines previous claims by the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) that the drug's potency has hit record highs.

In May, the media ran wild with stories of highly potent pot sweeping the nation, as the ONDCP announced that their testing showed average marijuana potency had topped 10 percent THC-level for the first time ever. THC is the active ingredient in marijuana.

'According to the latest data on marijuana samples analyzed to date, the average amount of THC in seized samples has reached a new high of 10.1 percent,' reads the announcement by Gil Kerlikowske, the Drug Czar.

But the full report is now available and it shows that the 10-percent bar is only crossed by throwing hash into the equation. Without hash, the average potency was 8.52 percent. The average potency of hash was 20.76 percent."

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Pictures and video. So brutal. You have been forewarned.

Israel Lancho, Spanish Bullfighter Gored (VIDEO, PHOTOS)

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DBT Week in Review - 5/29/09

DBT!

Big blog post from Patterson this week with all kinds of goodies:

Drive-By Truckers:

"DBT has a couple of new releases in the immediate pipeline:

First off, our Austin City Limits show from last fall will be released on July 7 on DVD. The DVD will include the entire performance (only about a third of it was aired when it came on TV).
This is by far the best live performance of ours ever caught on film.
We were on, the sound was excellent, and the production value top-notch. We loved playing on that stage and the crowd was fantastic.
It also features one of the last ever performances of '18 Wheels Of Love', featuring the full monologue and the sequel monologue.

Second in upcoming DBT News, on September 1st, New West will be releasing THE FINE PRINT (A Collection of Oddities and Rarities 2003-2008). We finished mixing it yesterday and are mastering it Thursday. It features 12 songs and maybe the most fun album we've ever made. Songs include 'George Jones Talkin' Cell Phone Blues', 'Rebels', 'Play It All Night Long', 'TVA' and the original never released version of 'Goode's Field Road'."

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Every young boys dream... Patterson playing at your wedding...

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Listen to Bettye and DBT will viewing a sweet slide show:

((( artists den ))):

"Photographer Erika Goldring captured great moments from a special Artists Den performance by Booker T. and the Drive-By Truckers with special guest Bettye LaVette at the Patrick F. Taylor Library at the Ogden Museum of Southern Art, University of New Orleans."

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GLL is simply one of the most beautiful songs ever written. Here's a cover version. Nice:

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Welcome to the wonderful world, Cooley Dale Smith!

NineBullets.org - Message Board • View topic - Lil Stroker...

Dexateens

Dexateen’s Chicago Premiere - Come Back Real Soon, Ya Hear? : Sound Citizen:

"Anyway - this is not your standard southern rock. And that was apparent from the moment the first chord rang out. Perhaps guitarist Lee Bains III’s AC/DC shirt and Gibson SG should have tipped me off. There are times when the Dexateens jam a hard rock sound, you can even hear some metal in there, but with a decidedly hillbilly heart - and I mean that in a great way. You can hear bluegrass in both the vocals and rhythms of every song and you get the feeling that it just comes out that way. It feels so deep-rooted in their sound that I don’t imagine they could play any other way even if they tried. At times I heard just hints of Neil Young, The Black Crowes and even some Kid Rock, believe it or not, but those are just my own music biases creeping in - the Dexateens have a sound all their own. And I dig it. They can slow it down too, like “Grandaddy’s Mouth.” (check out the partial video below.)

The Dexateens may have made their first Chicago stop this week, but it won’t be their last. I feel good about the staying power with this one. And so do the people at Austin City Limits, where they will be making an appearance."

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Music

EU pushes music industry to open up online rights - The Globe and Mail:

"EU antitrust regulators told the music industry Tuesday to move quickly and change licenses that currently restrict online music stores such as iTunes from offering the same songs for sale across Europe.

Internet music downloads in Europe lag behind those in the United States, pulling in just a fraction of revenues the record industry is losing from falling CD sales.

Part of the problem in Europe is that music rights are sold separately in each country, which has prevented Apple Inc (AAPL-Q130.097.596.20%) .'s iTunes from setting up a single store to service all of Europe. Instead, it has to seek licenses from each EU member state where it wishes to sell and to set up separate national stores with different music selections."

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Members of Spinal Tap, On the Road Without the Wigs - NYTimes.com

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R.I.P. Altamont Raceway

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A Guitar Magazine Tests the Luxury Waters - NYTimes.com:

"One might assume that the new magazine Guitar Aficionado is a spinoff of the 17-year-old Cigar Aficionado. Both have covers with celebrities holding the featured prop (the chef Tom Colicchio with a 1963 guitar, Jay-Z with a stogie of a presumably more recent vintage). They both carry stories about alcohol, watches and men’s fashion, and ads for cigars and speakers. Also, both titles include the word “aficionado.”"

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NPR: R.I.P. Jay Bennett:

"Today we say goodbye to the talented Jay Bennett, who brought a wonderful depth of sound to some of Wilco's best-loved records -- particularly my favorites, Summerteeth and Yankee Hotel Foxtrot. Bennett left the band in 2001, but his influence remains stamped on its sound"

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Daily Kos: R.I.P. Jay Bennett:

"However, with this morning's news, we now know what drove Bennett to sue a former friend and bandmate: the threat of overwhelming medical bills. Like many artists and countless others who do not pursue traditional forms of employment, Bennett lacked health insurance. At the time of his death, Bennett was suffering from severe pain, and though he desperately needed hip replacement surgery, he was concerned that seeking help would send him spiraling into crippling debt. Despite the claims of health care industry apologists, many people like Bennett are beyond assistance. Struggling to secure a steady source of income early on, musicians are often forced to choose between their vocation and health insurance when they're young, and by the time they get old, they typically find themselves ineligible to receive coverage under any plan whatsoever.

Stories like this underline the desperate need for health reform that, at the very least, includes a public option. The United States needs artists and innovators who work outside the confines of the corporate safety net, and we should not be forcing them to choose between their health and the art that enriches all of our lives."

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1st Gear Racism

Those crafty dumbfuck Republicans. They knew the copius amounts of racism that courses through their veins would be impossible to conceal with the nomination of a Latina to the SC.

So what do they do? They decide to own the term before it owns them.

To hide their own racism, they decided to call Judge Sotomayor a racist.

Project much?

Disgraced former majority leader and serial adulterer Newt tweets.... (hilarious how conservatives think they've finally gained tech parity 'cause they figured out how to use 'the Twitter'. Perfect venue for them though... 166 characters is about the limit of any 'idea' they might have).

Just a bunch of zoo monkeys slinging shit.

‘Latina woman racist should’ withdraw, Gingrich Twitters

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Remeber, it is only OK if you are Republican:

Flashback: Alito on his immigrant background: ‘I do take that into account’ when ruling.:

"Judge Sonia Sotomayor has come under fire from the radical right for stating that her experiences as a Latina affect her judicial outlook. However, these same conservative critics never objected when Judge Sam Alito said virtually the same thing during his confirmation hearing, discussing how he “can’t help but think of” his immigrant family when evaluating immigration cases:

ALITO: Senator, I tried to in my opening statement, I tried to provide a little picture of who I am as a human being and how my background and my experiences have shaped me and brought me to this point. … And that’s why I went into that in my opening statement. Because when a case comes before me involving, let’s say, someone who is an immigrant — and we get an awful lot of immigration cases and naturalization cases — I can’t help but think of my own ancestors, because it wasn’t that long ago when they were in that position. [...]

And that goes down the line. When I get a case about discrimination, I have to think about people in my own family who suffered discrimination because of their ethnic background or because of religion or because of gender. And I do take that into account."

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Rush, Newt and Cheney? Hardly proxies.

Chicken-shit motherfuckers.

Republican senators rely on conservative proxies to attack Sotomayor:

"In a signal that President Barack Obama’s Supreme Court nominee may face almost no opposition, no Republican senators have voiced their opposition to Sonia Sotomayor — even though the top Judiciary Committee Republican said Obama shouldn’t nominate her before her selection."

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Jeebus is responsible for the sub-prime mess. Why would I give 200 dolla to his diddy?

‘God’s debt cancellation’ donations help evangelist strike it rich:

"In a detailed investigation of South Carolina’s Inspiration Network, the Charlotte Observer reports that the network’s on-air promises that viewers can obtain prosperity and “God’s debt cancellation” by donating $200 or more have made its CEO David Cerullo a wealthy man and his cable network “one of the world’s fastest growing Christian broadcasters.”

With a salary that in 2007 amounted to $1.52 million, Cerulla is “the best-paid leader of any religious charity” and earns far more than CEOs of larger non-profits, such as Pat Robertson’s Christian Broadcasting Network. An additional $600,000 was paid in 2007 to his wife and children."

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That's all I got today. Been a busy week. Hopefully a guest blogger joins me next week.

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Fili-Busta-Clear-Skies

Rosalita... Chiquita... whatever.

What's the over/under before the first Republican utters 'wetback'.

I say a week.

I hear the weather is nice in FarLeftistan this time of year.

Huckabee: "Maria" Sotomayor Comes From "The Far Left"

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Up or down vote! Up or down vote! Unless it's a Democrat.

IOKIYAAR (It's OK if you are a Republican).

Look at all of the hypocrisy! Loads of video.

Democracy or Hypocrisy | Media Matters Action Network:

"In 2005, many Republican Senators went so far as to claim the filibuster of judicial nominees was unconstitutional. Now four years later, President Obama's has appointed Judge Sonia Sotomayor to the Supreme Court. Will Senate Republicans remain consistent in their position or commit one of the most blatant acts of hypocrisy in the 220-year history of the United States Senate?"

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Of course you'll see this all over the librul media on the TV.

Daily Kos: Eat your words, republican hypocrites:

"As Christy Hardin Smith so aptly points out, the foaming at the mouthers are already starting with their weak sauce hissy fit about Judge Sotomayor’s nomination to the Supreme Court.

And frankly, there are so many ways to push back against this – refuting their asinine talking points, pointing out their racist behavior, smacking down their 'analysis' of her prior opinions....but in reality, there is one way to short circuit all of this in a very simple and easily understandable way:

Why was there such an uproar in 2005 over a potential filibuster of Bush’s JUDICIAL NOMINEES but it is suddenly ok to filibuster a more qualified nominee now?"

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Doesn't work. Doesn't work. Doesn't work. Doesn't work.

Former military interrogator says torture cost hundreds ‘if not thousands’ of American lives

A 14-year military interrogator has undercut one of the key arguments posited by Vice President Dick Cheney in favor of the Bush Administration’s torture techniques and alleged that the use of torture has cost “hundreds if not thousands” of American lives.

The interrogator, who uses the name “Matthew Alexander,” says he oversaw more than 1,000 interrogations, conducting more than 300 in Iraq personally. His statements are captured in a new video by Brave New Films (below).

“Torture does not save lives,” Alexander said in his interview. “And the reason why is that our enemies use it, number one, as a recruiting tool…These same foreign fighters who came to Iraq to fight because of torture and abuse….literally cost us hundreds if not thousands of American lives.”

Moreover, Alexander avers that many — as many as 90 percent — of those captured in Iraq said they joined the fight against the United States because of the torture conducted at Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo Bay.

“At the prison where I conducted interrogations,” Alexander said, “we heard day in and day out, foreign fighters who had been captured state that the number one reason that they had come to fight in Iraq was because of torture and abuse, what had happened at Guantanamo Bay and Abu Ghraib.”

“Cheney,’ said Alexander, ‘fundamentally misunderstands the way America is viewed around the world,” a reporter who reviewed the video wrote Tuesday. “The American principles of freedom and democracy are cherished in the Muslim world and the idea, at least, of America is still a seductive one. But it is the behavior of the Bush administration at Guantanamo Bay, Abu Ghraib and secret prisons around the globe that undercuts that image, allowing Al Qaeda to make the argument that America isn’t what it stands for.”

“One of Al Qaeda’s goals, it’s not just to attack the United States, it’s to prove that we’re hypocrites, that we don’t live up to American principles,” Alexander said. “So when we use torture and abuse, we’re playing directly into one of their stated goals.

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Clear skies, bitches!

No ideas. Only words.

Luntz is an evil, for hire fuck.

Frank Luntz: It doesn’t matter what Obama’s health care plan says, we’ll still call it ‘government takeover.’

In an interview with the New York Times, GOP wordsmith Frank Luntz — who recently penned a health care messaging memo instructing Republicans to attack President Obama’s health reform efforts by criticizing the deficiencies in foreign health care systems — concedes that Republicans will label Obama’s reform effort a “government takeover” of health care, regardless of the actual proposal:

Is it a correct description of the president’s plans for reform?
We don’t know what he is proposing. We want to avoid “a Washington takeover.”

But that’s not at issue. What the Democrats want is for everyone to be able to choose between their old, private health-insurance plan and an all-new, public health-insurance option.
I’m not a policy person. I’m a language person.

Indeed, “rather than challenging the tenets of American reform proposals, Luntz establishes a straw man argument against a non-existent health plan.” As Democratic strategist Paul Begala observes in a recent retort to the Luntz memo, “Because they know they cannot win the argument honestly, Republicans are resorting to mendacity.”

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And to follow up on yesterday's post regarding the high cost of being poor.....

America's poor are its most generous givers | McClatchy

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Orange Threat of Beer Bongs

There's no argument too asinine that conservative's won't attempt to justify this crap.

If it is 'just like a beer bong at frat parties', then why are we using it against 'terrorist' in order to extract information? Where is the 'fear' element? That I'll pass out and wake up with penises drawn on my forehead?

Douchebag conservatives.

Comparing waterboarding to beer funnels:

"Doug Powers, a columnist for World Net Daily, must have had a really rough college experience.

In his Monday morning weekly update, Powers jumped on the water-board soapbox and leveled an argument in favor of torturing prisoners. Tugging on the coattails of the recent 'Mancow' waterboarding media fiasco, he comes out with this gem:

A video that shows 'Mancow' Muller doing something that, if there were beer instead of water in that pitcher, happens every weekend at frat parties, can be viewed here.

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Speaking of douchebag conservatives.....

King Douche Newt doth protest way too fucking much:

PostPartisan - Gingrich's Deranged Ethics Advice:

"it’s amazing that Gingrich -- the only House speaker in history to be disciplined for ethics violations -- had the gall to make that claim. Does he think no one remembers?

Let’s review. Gingrich was reprimanded by the House and had to pay a $300,000 penalty for improperly using tax-deductible money for partisan political gain and for submitting false information to the ethics subcommittee investigating his conduct. An investigation by the House Ethics Committee concluded that Gingrich’s conduct represented 'intentional or…reckless' disregard of House rules and that there was “reason to believe” that Gingrich knew he was providing false information.

'The violation does not represent only a single instance of reckless conduct,' a report by an investigative subcommittee concluded. 'Rather, over a number of years and in a number of situations, Mr. Gingrich showed a disregard and lack of respect for the standards of conduct that applied to his activities.'

To be clear, the ethics case against Gingrich was no partisan witch hunt. The investigative subcommittee that determined he had violated ethics rules was headed by Florida Republican Porter Goss. The vote to reprimand him and impose the penalty was 395 to 28."

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Uh, yeah, I'd like to see the FCC try to enter my home.

This needs to be fixed.

FCC’s Warrantless Household Searches Alarm Experts | Threat Level | Wired.com

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I can't tell you how many times I've made this argument to my conservative friends who work for corporations that suck billions from the federal teat yet love to bitch about some 'welfare-queen' anecdote a friend of a friend told them.

I'm met with the usually slack-jawed blank stare 99% of the time.

The High Cost of Poverty: Why the Poor Pay More - washingtonpost.com:

"You have to be rich to be poor.

That's what some people who have never lived below the poverty line don't understand.
This Story

Put it another way: The poorer you are, the more things cost. More in money, time, hassle, exhaustion, menace. This is a fact of life that reality television and magazines don't often explain.

So we'll explain it here. Consider this a primer on the economics of poverty."

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The kids are NOT alright. Though maybe not much different that other generations. Just more media savvy.

Top Six Ways To Kill Piper: Middle School Girls Make Instructional Cartoon About How To Kill Classmate (VIDEO):

"A Pierce County mother says she's horrified by a cartoon video - posted online - that showed several ways to kill her sixth grade daughter. The cartoon was made off school grounds by some of her daughter's classmates, girls aged 11 and 12. Titled 'Top Six Ways to Kill Piper,' it includes depictions of girls shooting her, making her commit suicide, poisoning her and even pushing her off a cliff."

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This would explain a lot.

Cocaine test prompts Red Bull removal in Germany

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